Seven Sainted Beasts
These seven extremely powerful creatures reside in the Southern part of Zhou, and terrorize those who enter their territory. Unlike most alpha predators, they are known to cooperate. The Beasts have been known to exist for decades, and not one of them has been killed. Information regarding the beasts and their abilities is incomplete as a result of the low survival rate of those who encounter them. The party has discovered that the Sainted Beasts obtained their fearsome power through the consumption of human lives and knowledge, and that the leavings of their sinister feasting can transform animals into beast-men with a craving for human flesh. Lord of Life and Death This Beast appears as a mangy white tiger surrounded by fog and the smell of death and rot. It is more erratic in its movements than most of the Beasts and as such is the most likely to be encountered alone. It is known for targeting enemies that appear physically vulnerable, particularly casters. The Living Nightmare This Beast is surrounded by a swarm of mosquitolike insects that cover every inch of its skin.The insects can spread Malaria and also possess a poison that can cause victims to experience night terrors. The movement of the swarm can alter the apparent shape of the creature within, but it is believed that underneath The Living Nightmare is lean and dragonlike. When overwhelmed, the Living Nightmare may retreat and leave poison and disease to overcome its enemies. The Poisoned Lover This Beast takes on the form of some kind of ethereal cloud, the pattern of which is suggestive of a monarch butterfly. The poison of the cloud releases scales, which can cause hallucination and mind control upon entering the body through inhalation, eyes, or ears. Because the Lover exists at least partially on the ethereal plane, conventional weapons are useless against it. It also appears to have defenses against force effects. Energy spells appear to provoke a reaction, but that reaction may be only illusory. The Warrior's Judge This beast has the four legs, head, and shoulders of a lion and the scales and stinger of an emperor scorpion. It is not poisonous, but controls fire and releases explosive clumps of fur and dust. It appears to be immune to cold in addition to fire. Otherwise it does not appear to have any supernatural defense, but is dangerous in physical combat and tends to act in support of the other Beasts. The Great Corpse-Eater A gigantic predatory bird thought to be a close cousin to an eagle. Its feathers are a light charcoal grey, and it exhibits some sort of mastery over cold. It can control temperature in order to give itself an advantage in flight maneuvering - and to hamper its enemies in kind. It has a horrendous screech which can inspire panic in even veteran soldiers. It appears to feed on its victims only after they have been slain, and may also eat things that are not normally edible, such as rocks. The Great Corpse-Eater is also capable of appearing in a the form of an albino tengu - White Feather Luo. The Forest Torment This beast burrows under the ground and is known mainly by tremors felt through the earth. It is capable of eating whole groups of people at once. The only proposed method for even beginning to fight this Beast is by air assault, but this is made difficult due to assistance from The Great Corpse-Eater and The Rajah of Winds. Rajah of Winds This Beast's existence is only hypothesized by way of mysterious winds that hamper the Tzen military in combat, particularly in aiding the other Sainted Beasts. Category:Mystery Category:Zhou